Wolf Heart Part 1
by HorseLoverIceshadow98
Summary: Two years ago Sasha's mother was killed instantly in a car crash, yet she was left without a scratch. It isn't until now she realizes why and her life really begins, but it's not easy. First haunted by nightmares each time she fell asleep of her mom's death, next Sasha is the only one able to save her kind, but may be at the cost of her life.
1. Chapter 1

_Wolf Heart_

_Haunting Memories _

The nightmare had come to haunt her again. At first it was just a Saturday morning and Sasha had won the last soccer game of the season.

She is a brown haired girl with dark blue eyes, never wore makeup, avoided dances, and one of the most independent girls in her grade. In sixth grade she exceeded all her classes, except English, loved to read, draw, and write. She loved all animals, but her favorite one of all, wolves.

Her mother, Marie, had given her a simple necklace with a single wolf the size of a quarter carved out from a pale pink stone for her birthday. It was the day before the accident, when Marie told Sasha that the stone was carved out by the Dakota Indians, one of their ancestors. Although, Sasha had so little Indian in her nobody would be able to guess. She wore the necklace for good luck during the soccer game, luckily the coaches hadn't notice to tell her to take it off. They had won game against the unbeatable Red Dragons until that day when the White Wolves defeated them. They cheered and celebrated, but Sasha left early, since she wasn't much of the party type.

While driving back home Sasha fell asleep in the back and Marie drove down the highway. Neither of them knew what was about to happen in the next few moments. A black truck next to the grey car Sasha and Marie were in swerved from side to side on the highway. Then the unexpected happened. Whoever was in the black car made a hard left, slamming into Marie's car. Sasha instantly woke up from the sound of screeching of metal against metal and the smell of burning rubber. She could see her mother trying to slow down but the other driver had them pinned against the stone wall next to the highway. Glass shattered and bits of rubber and metal flew. Both the mother and daughter were focused on the driver but Sasha couldn't get a good look of who was pinning them. She saw her mom's eyes widen as the other driver suddenly veered away. She didn't even have time to think why when suddenly they crashed into the cement wall.

Sasha woke with a start. Sweat beaded down her neck. Lightning flashed from outside followed by roaring thunder soon after.

She fell back in bed and cried. Every detail from two years ago still burned in her mind. Like a scar over her heart to remain forever. There was so much blood, and Sasha was surrounded by large chunks of shredded metal. The interior was shredded and smoke filled the air. The entire time, Sasha didn't have a single scratch. Not one drop of blood, not a single broken bone, not even a scrape, but perfectly fine. Marie wasn't so lucky. The horrible sight of her mother was still fresh in her memory. She passed away on October 27, 2009.

Tears flowed down Sasha's cheeks as she listened to the thunder crack and rain pound the windows. It seemed like it happened that day. The scar never faded, it deepened each time she had that dream. Which was nearly every night the pain came back. Ever since the accident, Sasha wore the wolf necklace because she was wearing it during the car crash, and part of her felt as if it was because of the necklace, she wasn't hurt. It made her feel closer to her mother's spirit somehow. It made her feel more complete. She thought of all the memories of her and her mom, and the day she first wore the wolf necklace when she was five for a day. It was faint, but Sasha remembers seeing a bloodthirsty cougar, and a pack of wolves. The rest she couldn't quite remember. Her parents told her it was just her imagination, but at a young age, Sasha wasn't really known for having a big imagination.

The next morning Sasha got dressed, ate breakfast and so on to get ready for school. There was two weeks left of school, and she thought she might be able to survive that. Once she was ready her dad drove her down to the bus stop.

Halfway down the hill, a shiver ran up her spine, like someone was watching her. Turning her head around, she saw nothing but the woods, the house, and a flash of dark grey disappeared into the brush. It looked like an animal, but wolves didn't live this far down south of Minnesota. Could've been a coyote, maybe a really big one, or maybe it was just her imagination. Maybe…


	2. Chapter 2

Wolf Heart

Say All You Want, It's Over

Sasha hated Mondays. The beginning of a boring week of school. Why weren't there just four days a week instead of five? This Monday though would be the worst of all.

Sasha was on her way to her first class, History, when a note fell out of one of the lockers. Avoiding getting pushed down and having her hand trampled, she picked up the note quickly and looked up to see which locker it fell out of. Sasha realized it fell out of Silvia's the locker, number 729. She unfolded the paper. Before Sasha got past Dear Silvia, the bell rang. Stashing the note in the side pocket of her backpack she hurried to her first class.

During the entire History class she thought of who wrote the letter to Silvia. It probably shouldn't have been any of her business to stick her nose into, but curiosity got the best of her. To Sasha, she and Silvia were basically mortal enemies since preschool. When they first got to know each other Silvia just decided to act like a total brat towards Sasha and a smart*** kiss-up to the teachers. It felt like hours before the bell rang. It wasn't easy listening to a boring teacher give lessons and notes. Especially since Sasha was an ADHD teenager. Everybody immediately shot up and ran for the door. In between each class students got a five minute break before they had to be at the next one.

Sasha crammed her History papers into her locker and reached for the note in her backpack. The crumbled notebook sheet read:

_Dear Silvia,_

She took a closer look and realized the hand writing looked very familiar. The letter continued:

_I know we've been together for a couple years but I'm not sure if we can keep it up this summer. See I'll be moving to Denver, Colorado because my dad found a way better job there, and long-distance relationship is hard. Believe me, my older sister learned that the hard way. I'll be moving in mid-June. Let's meet up outside the public library after school. Love you._

_From,_

_Kyle_

Sasha felt like she could scream. She and Kyle have been in a relationship for three years! For three years they've been dating, and for two years Kyle has been cheating on her with that kiss-up prissy. She never even heard Kyle mention anything about moving. Sasha was furious, and she knew she would get her revenge someday.

After a torturous English class, taking notes in Reading, dissecting a frog in Science, which involved five puking girls going to the nurse's office and a guy named Hunter going with them after getting nailed by a mop (don't ask.) After that Sasha ran a mile in under six minutes, and Study Hall at last. Since she had no homework she continued her drawing of a pack of grey wolves running through snowy mountains. While drawing she overheard Kyle whisper, "Did you get my note?"

Silvia whispered back," What note?"

"I put a note in your locker. Your locker_ is_ number 729, right?"

"Right, but I didn't find any note."

A smile crept up Sasha's lips as she heard Kyle swear and flip out.

"Well, hopefully Sasha didn't find it." Whispered Kyle. "I mean, wouldn't want _her_ to find the note. Being my other girlfriend, she would get real ticked."

Sasha's skin began to crawl. _Other_ girlfriend? Silvia knew about their relationship and now she is just the _other_ girlfriend!?

She stood up, gathered her stuff into her backpack, with the note in her pocket, she marched over.

"Kyle," she said impatiently when he didn't notice her right away. "I need to talk to you."

Kyle shrugged his shoulders. Silvia threw her blond hair over her left shoulder and walked off to join her prissy friends. Once she was gone Sasha took Kyle's hand and half dragged him out of the cafeteria, upstairs to her homeroom, which was now dark and empty. She guessed the teacher already left.

"Hey Sasha, what's this all about?" Kyle asked as she swatted away his hand as soon as they entered the room.

She sighed. "I heard you talking to Silvia."

Kyle developed a sudden interest in his shoes as he asked, "How much?"

"All of it! I'm not deaf Kyle! Now what's going on between you and that kiss-up brat Silvia?"

He looked up. "Nothing! How could you have heard me anyway? You'd have to have ears of a hawk to hear me above everybody else!"

Sasha reached for her pocket and took out the note. Kyle's eyes widened.

"This is the letter that fell out of Silvia's locker. Why didn't you tell me you were moving? Why didn't you tell me you went moony-eyed for Silvia two years ago?"

"Sasha, we aren't… please, I still love you. Remember all the good times we had? The reason I didn't tell you in the first place is because I didn't want to hurt you. Believe me, I-"

She could see the lies he was telling. It was sort of her sixth sense. She could tell a lie from the truth. Sasha turned around. She would get her revenge, just not today.

"Say all you want Kyle. You can hide behind your lies." She walked up to the door. "It's over."

She clung onto her wolf necklace with her right hand and placed her left on the door handle. She wasn't hurt. Did Kyle really think she was that weak? Sasha was about to twist the handle when suddenly alarms blared over the speakers. A lockdown?


	3. Chapter 3

Howls in the Night

Once the alarms stopped a lady announced over the speakers, "This is an interior lockdown. This is an interior lockdown."

The announcer would have called it a drill if it was one, so either she stupidly forgot to call it one, or this was the real deal. Sasha looked up at the clock above the door. This had to real, because the school never has drills at 3:00, even when her parents went to this school the drills were never this late.

Kyle and Sasha didn't speak to each other while she pulled down the blinds over the window next to the door she then locked. After a few minutes of pacing, waiting for the announcer to call of the lockdown, Sasha became easily bored. She explored the History teacher's desk and found a pack of watermelon gum and stole a piece along with a few Jolly Ranchers from the teacher's stash. Helping herself to all the sour blueberry ones, Sasha hid them in her pocket and walked up to the door, listening for any footsteps. Nothing.

Sighing, she was about to continue her pacing when Sasha heard footsteps out in the hallway. Thanks to her keen sense of hearing, she heard fast, heavy footsteps coming closer and closer. Sasha peeked through the blinds and saw a man wearing all black. Black leather jacket, jeans, shoes, gloves, a cowboy hat and handkerchief covered most of his face and wore sunglasses so Sasha couldn't even tell what he looked like. He past the room, with a gun in his hands and looked like he was trying to reload it. The stranger was looking over his shoulder as if the police were chasing after him.

Sasha's heart raced, frozen at the sight of the man. Why did he look so familiar? She grabbed her necklace with her right hand, somehow comforting her a little bit as the man sprinted by, then ran around the corner down the stairs. Just a few moments later she heard a clinking sound from the hallway. Then the strangest scene happened in front of her. A single dog, or possibly a wolf, raced by, hardly more than a blur. Its fur was dark grey, with maybe a silver marking on the animal's forehead. She backed away from the window. How did such a beautiful wolf get in a school?

After several minutes of pacing, her heart still raced after seeing the man and the wolf (or maybe a dog, Sasha isn't sure which,) she asked herself, was that the same animal she saw that morning? It all could've been Sasha's mind messing with her, which happened a lot during class. Kyle apparently was paying no attention to her, like she cared. It was as if he was just in a boring classroom and he was texting to Silvia on his phone. Sasha knew she would get her revenge on both of them. Not today though.

It wasn't until 3:50 the alarms went off, making her jump out of her skin, for a few seconds the announcer said, "The interior lockdown is all clear. Interior lockdown is all clear."

Sasha unlocked the door and dashed to her locker. Shoving out of the way a few old assignments, she found her red cell phone at the back. Dialing her dad's phone number, she ignored Kyle muttering how he had to walk home since the school probably wasn't going to send out the buses. Sasha lived 10 miles away from the school so walking home for her would take her a long time.

She waited for her dad to pick up the phone she paced up and down the hallway, calling back a few times since her dad wouldn't pick up the first time.

Sasha was about to give up and call their neighbor's phone number when she heard her dad say, "Hello. Sasha?"

"Hey dad, there was a lockdown today."

"A lockdown? I don't remember a lockdown lasting this long when I went to school. Was it a drill?"

"No, I don't think so. Anyway, can you come pick me up? I don't think the school is sending out the buses today."

Sasha heard her dad sigh over the phone. "Just comes to show how cheep the school is. Alright, I'll be there in a few minutes. Does Kyle need a ride?"  
Sasha knew that Kyle's house was more on the outskirts of town and would take half an hour to walk there. He can walk the way home for all she cared. She answered, "He's just walking home today."

"Oh, okay. Well, see you soon."

"Bye dad."

"Bye."

She hung up.

Sasha waited on the metal bench outside next to the gym door and bike racks. Listening to music from her iPod, tapping to the beat, she looked down the hill past the road leading to the school parking lot. A few kids, probably 2nd graders, were practicing throwing and catching baseballs. It reminded her of when she tried it when she was little. Sasha was never good at it. Not enough running for her. Soccer and track seemed fun, but she was afraid of being in a group since her mom died. Several classmates urged her to join track because they told her she was practically one of the fastest girls in the school, and her old teammates were disappointed when Sasha told them she wasn't joining soccer again. They needed just one more player in the team but she gave them her final answer.

A chill crawled up her spine. Was she being watched? Sasha twisted around and saw the woods and the river that ran past the school. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, no strangers or animals except birds and squirrels. So why did she still have the feeling? Ignoring it she turned back to the playground in front of her. A dozen kids no more than five or six years old were chasing each other in a game of tag. At the top of the spider web (one of the playground equipment,) was a little boy with sandy colored hair wearing a green t-shirt and blue jeans, daringly climbed higher and higher on the red ropes until he was at the top of the 25-foot tall spider web. Sasha was like that before. At the age of three she had ridden her dad's big Clydesdale in the middle of the night bareback. Her dad had told her that she clung on Winter's mane as the horse galloped around the pasture. He was an old horse though and passed away a year ago.

Coming up to the school was a green truck. Her dad was here.

The drive home was silent until about halfway Sasha's dad asked, "So what kind of drill was it?"

"It was an interior lockdown. The announcer didn't say anything about it being a drill."

"Really? Did you see anybody suspicious?"

Sasha didn't want to worry her dad, so she replied, "Nope, just me and Kyle in the History class."

"You know, I find it kind of strange that you didn't want to give Kyle a ride. Each time he can't take the bus or his parents can't take him home, you immediately offer a ride. Is anything wrong?"

She sighed, but not a hint of sadness. "We broke up."

Her dad made a quick look at his daughter, then back to road. "That must've been tough for you."

"Not really actually, he was already dating someone else," Sasha answered plainly. Her dad shook his head.

"Young teenagers these days just can't be honest as they used to be. Oh by the way, the neighbors said there have been wolf sightings not too far from where we live."

Sasha froze.

"But I thought wolves don't live this far down south of Minnesota. Will the neighbors shoot them?"

"They can't. Not unless the wolves go after their livestock or them. Wolves are still on the endangered species list, so it would be illegal to shoot them without reason."

Sasha stared through the trees as they reached their spread out neighborhood. The last time she saw a wolf she was 5 years old and hardly remembered it. Trees blurred past, and what may have just been a trick of the light, two emerald orbs were visible from the shadows of the crowded bushes and oak trees.

An image suddenly flashed in her mind. It was her mom, wearing the wolf necklace, walking through the woods, and smiling like she was the proudest mother ever.

"Sasha?"

Sasha jumped. "What?"

Her dad said. "What did I just say?"

Her skin grew hot. "Er, I wasn't listening."

"Make sure you remember to call Shadow back in the house after you have fed him. If those wolves haven't left and plan to stay a while I don't want the dog getting in any fights, okay?"

"Okay."

Back at the house, Sasha thanked God that she didn't have any homework. All she wanted to do was just listen to music and read stories from all night, except she had school the next day and Sasha wished she didn't have to go to sleep. She was afraid of having the same dream again. It made her feel slightly more and more exhausted each day she had the dream. The only nights she didn't have the haunting dream was when she didn't sleep at all. This night would be different.

She had a grill cheese and tomato soup for supper and for desert Sasha brought a few Oreos up to her bedroom. She let in her dog, a black border collie, Shadow. Sasha sat in her bed and took out her journal from under her pillow. She listened to the song "If Everyone Cared", brought her blue pen, and began to write down the day's events.

She wrote:

_Dear Mom, _(she used 'mom' instead of journal or diary so she felt less alone.)

_I found out that Kyle has been hiding a secret from me for the past two years. He's been dating that little brat Silvia behind my back. Not only that, but he's moving away in a few weeks. Good riddance to him, but first I need to get back at him. Today there was an interior lockdown and it was the first real one in years. I remember I was feeling sick and dad was going to pick me up but couldn't because of the lockdown. That must've been 6 years ago. But this time I saw a man wearing all black carrying a gun and a grey dog\ wolf chasing after him. Then coming home I had the same feeling I did when I left this morning, like someone was watching me. This afternoon while coming back home I saw what looked like two green eyes, but it may have just been the sun playing tricks on my eyes._

_To you mom,_

_Sasha_

Once she was done writing she closed her journal, and noticed Shadow was staring straight ahead, looking out my open balcony door. Then she heard him growl. Not sure what he was growling at Sasha got out of bed and crouched next to Shadow.

Sasha still had the headphones in, so she turned off her music and took off the headphones.

She asked, "What's the matter boy?"

Shadow continued to growl and then Sasha heard it too. Footsteps from outside, and there was more than one set. Opening the screen door of her balcony she walked out and noticed half a dozen dark figures walking through the tall grass on the neighbor's property next to the rusty barbed wire fence. Sasha gasped. She knew exactly what they were, even with the sun gone and the moon just coming up in the sky. They were too big to be coyotes, too small to be deer. They were wolves.

One of the wolves stopped, maybe looking in her direction. It barked to the rest of the pack, and then crawled under the fence, followed by the others. Seeing the wolves a little closer Sasha noticed they all had black fur, except for a dark grey one. The black wolves made a semi-circle around the dark grey one, and all together, they raised their heads to the stars and howled. It all seemed like a dream to Sasha. She realized that the howl was long and mourning, like they had lost a friend. And somehow, Sasha just knew, they were calling for someone. The pack was calling for her.


	4. Chapter 4

Guardians of the Dakota

Sasha blinked her eyes, disbelieving what her eyes were seeing. To be sure it was real she sneaked past her dad's office, where he was typing on his computer and had his headphones on, which would explain why he couldn't hear the wolves howl. He was probably listening to some old people music. Also his office was on the opposite side of the house the pack of wolves were waiting for her, so he couldn't see them either.

Sasha carefully sneaked into the garage quickly and quietly so her dad wouldn't hear, and slipped on her shoes. She ran out to the yard, hoping the wolves would still be there, and hopeful the wolves wouldn't attack her on sight. The moment she saw them they were still in the same position, but facing her direction.

The first thing she noticed about these wolves was that they were larger than normal wolves. The largest kind of wolf, the artic wolf, can stand 2 ½ feet tall and 6 feet long from nose to tail. The smallest wolf of the group, judging from how tall it was sitting, must've stood at least 1 foot taller than that and 7 feet from nose to tail.

Another detail Sasha noticed about the wolves was that each one wore a stone amulet, though she couldn't tell what the color or shape of the stone. The black wolves each had one, but the dark grey one didn't.

The wolf without an amulet stepped forward. Its emerald eyes glinted in the rising moon's light. The eyes were very familiar, and so was the animal itself. This must've been the same animal she saw at the school. But how it got in she had no idea.

Without moving its mouth, the wolf spoke in such a familiar voice Sasha could feel tears on the edge of her eye lids gather. In her mother's voice, the beautiful wolf spoke, "It has been too long since we last talked, hasn't it Sasha?"

The word Sasha could choke out was, "Mom?"

It didn't seem at all possible, but the wolf nodded. Either all of this was a dream Sasha would soon wake up from too soon, or her mother was actually alive, and somehow, a wolf. She stepped forward, and tears flowed down her cheeks as Sasha crumbled down to her knees and wrapped her arms around the wolf's neck.

The moment seemed to last forever until Sasha's mom said, "Dear, I think it's time for me to explain all of this."

It didn't matter to Sasha that much at the time, but she let go reluctantly. She did want to know why a pack of wolves were on her yard…. and why they seemed familiar too.

The grey wolf began, "Remember when I told you how the necklace you are wearing now was carved out of stone by the Dakota Indians, our ancestors?"

Sasha thought, how could I forget? Not being able to say the words herself, she nodded.  
The wolf continued, "Well, they were created because the stone showed the close friendship between the wolves and the Dakota tribes. Only 200 amulets were ever made. The wolves had such a close friendship that when a wolf died, their spirit was carried on in the amulet. If the human wearing the amulet also died, then he or she would be born as a wolf. They would look like the wolf they befriended, because the necklace acts like a gateway for wolves. The two spirits in wolf form would then share the same mind."

Sasha listened to it all but hardly understood any of it. She asked, "I'm sorry, but I'm lost. How- are you a wolf?"

The wolf replied, "Any human that has Dakota blood wearing the necklace can transform into a wolf. I have worn the necklace before which opened the gateway for a wolf spirit to choose me. Because you wore it, a wolf spirit chose you and protected you in the car crash. Also, when you held the amulet in your hand when you were just 5 years old, it sent a signal to a nearby pack of wolves, saying that you were in trouble. The cougar and pack of wolves was not your imagination Sasha. You wore the necklace, showing that you were an ally of the wolves. That's why they defended you."

Sasha recalled the pack of wolves. She was in a middle of a circle surrounded by wolves and the cougar prowling in the shadows. She asked, "Was the pack of wolves that defended me," She pointed at the black wolves behind her mother, "those wolves?"

Her mother nodded again.

The big question nagging her mind didn't seem possible, but since it wouldn't hurt she asked, "So...does that mean if I wear this necklace, I can be like you?"

A slightly worried covered the wolf's face. The rest of the pack shifted from their spots as well. Her mom replied, "It is possible, but very difficult. The ritual of a wolf spirit choosing you and becoming a wolf can be painful. It can even kill a person if the human's soul is not strong. The wolf spirit that chose you will depend on your name, and what you will look like. After transforming the first time into a wolf, it is much easier to turn back into a human and into a wolf.

Sasha thought of how much she missed seeing her mom as a person. Her dad missed her too. She excitedly asked, "Could you turn back into a human?"

The wolf dipped her head down. "I'm sorry, but because I wasn't wearing the necklace in the crash, I could no longer transform back into human. I now look like the spirit that chose me, whose name was Swift Silver, which is the name I go by. I now am a wolf until the day I die unless I wear an amulet."

"How- what do you mean by 'die unless I where an amulet'?"

Swift Silver looked up; her green eyes reflected the moon and stars. "The amulet allows the wolf spirit to protect you from sickness and aging. Only murder can kill you as a wolf, even while wearing the necklace. It you are a human, it goes the other way around."

The black wolves were silent the whole time until the smallest one, a male, asked, "Um, Swift Silver? Are you going to ask her if she wants to be one of us?"

Sasha froze, holding her breath. Could she really become a wolf herself?

Swift Silver twisted her head around and answered, "I was just getting to that Dark Shadow."

The grey wolf faced Sasha again.

"Sasha, I believe you're ready to become one of us. I believe you are ready to become a Guardian of the Dakota. Do you except?"


	5. Chapter 5

Wolf Heart

From Human to Wolf

Sasha had no idea what a 'Guardian of the Dakota' is all about, or what she'd have to do so she thought about it for a moment. Then obviously, she nodded her head, with no idea what she was getting herself into.

Swift Silver replied with a hint of regret in her voice, "Alright then. Well, let's go. We need to get to the Wolf Spring before midnight." The grey wolf began to turn around and walk towards the woods.

Sasha asked, "Wait, where are we going exactly, and why do we have to be there by midnight? Can't I have an answer?"

The rest of the pack followed her mother as she answered, "Midnight is when the wolf spirits are the strongest, so the one who chose you can help you transform easier. As for where we are going, well, you've been there before."

Sasha and the pack followed Swift Silver, and the smallest of the pack, Dark Shadow, walked at Sasha's right side.

Dark Shadow said, "We aren't going far, the Wolf Spring is a small, hidden underground lake where people with the amulet with Dakota blood can turn into a wolf. Unfortunately, if they're not careful, or if they don't have a strong enough soul, it can kill their human life and they are stuck as a wolf for the rest of their lives."

Sasha fidgeted and clenched and unclenched her fingers. If she could die from transforming into a wolf, why would her own mother ask her? What would it be like turning into a wolf, her human life dying? And what about her dad? If she died, what would her dad do?

As if Dark Shadow was reading her mind, he answered, "Don't worry, Swift Silver wouldn't ask you so quickly if she didn't think you were ready. After just one year, and she asks you, that's pretty quick."

Sasha was confused. "A year is quick?"

Yeah, I mean, Guardians usually watch people with Dakota blood for years before deciding they're ready. Mostly four or five years of watching a person or until they're about your age before recruiting them is common. Although, very few can turn back into humans after a wolf spirit has chosen them. Out of this pack, only Black Hunter's human life hasn't died yet."

Apparently, Black Hunter didn't like to be talked about, because the largest wolf of the pack twisted his head at Dark Shadow and snarled, his eyes (a green eye and an amber colored eye,) staring down angrily at him. Sasha didn't understand why Black Hunter was so angry. Then Swift Silver turned and barked at him, causing Black Hunter to flinch, pinning his ears down in defense and avoided eye contact. The grey wolf continued to lead the pack. Sasha followed next to Dark Shadow, still trying to make sense of all this. Out of the wolves only one wolf manage to cling on to his human life. How would she survive? What would it even be like?

The forest was huge so the walk gave Dark Shadow time to explain who was who in the pack. He explained that one of the best ways to tell the differences between the pack of wolves as a human is by the amulet they're wearing. His amulet was amber colored, Black Hunter has a turquoise amulet, Eclipse's amulet is dark blue, and Rising Sun's amulet is silver and Rising Moon's amulet is gold. Sasha could tell another difference by their eye color. Rising Sun has yellow eyes and Rising Moon also had yellow in her eyes, but like half-moons, half of each of her eyes was colored silver. The two were brother and sister. Why Rising Sun had silver and Rising Moon had gold, Sasha didn't know. The last wolf, Calling Crow, wore a light green amulet that had thin veins of black running over it like a web.

A question was nagging Sasha's mind, and it seemed rude to ask, but her ADHD made Sasha blurt out to Dark Shadow, "So, how did you die? Was it during the transformation?"

She scolded herself in her mind why she asked that, but Dark Shadow, unfazed by the question, answered, "No, I had survived that. It was while I was riding my bike along with my best friend on the Douglas trail on the 4th of July." Dark Shadow looked down, then closing his eyes, he remembering the time he died. "It was getting close to dark, and my friend and I were going to meet a few other guys in town and go to one of their houses to watch fireworks. Then, while crossing a road, there was a sharp turn and driving at full speed, someone in a black truck hit both my friend and I."

The hairs on Sasha's arms and neck stood up. Someone in a black truck? Sure black trucks were popular, especially out in the country, but the thought made Sasha almost jump out of her skin.

Dark Shadow finished, "So me and my friend were both killed. The person in the truck kept driving while I bled to death, and later I woke up at one of the Wolf Springs, stuck as a wolf."

It was hard for Sasha to stop herself from shedding tears. She asked, "But weren't you wearing the amulet?"

Dark Shadow shook his head. "My friends thought it was weird how I wore it all the time and said that I should take it off, just for the night, so I did. Worst mistake I had ever made and it cost me my life."

Sasha was never good with saying sorry, but her mom had told her that sometimes silence is the best way to say it. Dark Shadow seemed to like it.

Finally, deep in the middle of the woods, Sasha and the wolf pack reached a small clearing. In the center of the clearing were 3 huge boulders, chipped and covered in moss, reached 16 feet tall, and at the ground was a small tunnel that looked hardly big enough for Black Hunter. Swift Silver was right, she had been here before. Sasha was barely 5 years old when she ventured out in the woods and found this clearing, and walked right up to the tunnel entrance, despite her mother calling for her to come back. She tried to go into the tunnel, but before she could crawl past 2 feet in the tunnel, Marie dragged her back out and scolded her, telling her that the boulders could have collapsed right on top of her and that she should never come back to this spot. Since then Sasha hadn't even gone near the clearing and now years later, her mom was leading her back to the spot.

Swift Silver announced, "We are here."

Then Swift Silver crawled through the gap between the boulders, and one by one the wolves waited a few moments before following the wolf in front of them. After Swift Silver it was Eclipse, then Black Hunter, Calling Crow was next, and for a couple minutes Rising Sun and Rising Moon argued about whom would go first. Rising Moon won since she was slightly older than her brother. Dark Shadow patiently waited once the brother and sister have entered, then crawled through. Now left alone, Sasha waited a few moments also, then stepped forward, bent down on her hands and knees, and crawled through the gap.

She wasn't sure what drew her here years ago, because after crawling 5 feet the tunnel was completely black. Sasha couldn't hear the wolves, but the echoing drops of water were coming from ahead of her. The feeling of darkness swallowed her, and Sasha stopped, fighting the temptation of going back. She continued forward slowly, like the rocks and darkness were weighing her down. The wolves have just left her all alone, and they expected Sasha to join them? Her arms nearly gave out from under her as she crawled forward, the palms of her hands felt more and more sore, but not bleeding even while rough earth and tiny sharp rocks rubbed against them.

Suddenly her pale pink amulet felt warm on her chest. New energy filled her body, and her hands no longer hurt. At that time Sasha noticed a very faint light about 14 feet in front of her glowed. Sasha crawled forward as quickly as she could. Gradually the walls became wider and the ceiling sloped higher and higher until she reached the Wolf Spring. The sight was beautiful. Stretching out before her was a small lake filled with crystals of every color and white, shimmering figures roamed the lake. Most were too blurred to tell what shape they tried to take, but one figure that caught her eye was a wolf, its head facing her direction. As soon as it had took the shape of a wolf it dissolved into mist and joined the hundreds of other shimmering figures. The cave's walls were covered in growing crystals at least 3 inches long, not much compared to the crystals that grew at the cave's entrance, which stood 2 and a half feet tall at least. Each of the crystals glowed the color they were, like pink, red, blue, green, yellow, purple, white, orange, and the list goes on to different colors and shades. The sight was too magnificent to explain.

At the opposite side of where Sasha gazed over the beautiful sight, the wolves sat in a semi-circle around Swift Silver on an island connected to the cave wall. In the center of the lake was another island that was a perfect circle and shining down was moonlight. Swift Silver replied, "Amazing isn't it?" Even with the distance between Sasha and the wolves she could hear her mother fine. "I'm surprised that you have already made contact with your chosen wolf spirit tonight."

Sasha wondered, how could she tell? Did she maybe sense something also when I was in the tunnel the same time I did?

Swift Silver asked a question that would mean life or death for Sasha's human life. She asked, "Are you ready?"

She had never felt anymore less ready to do this than ever. But as Sasha nodded her head, the soon to be wolf wondered what it would feel like. What _dying_ would feel like.

Swift Silver made a slight dip in her head and said, "Then step forward onto that." The grey wolf was pointing her nose towards the island. Sasha looked down at the bottom of the lake, which was hard with so many white figures floating in the water. Her best guess was 20 feet deep, and even though Sasha could swim well, what would happen if she touched one of the spirits? But something came over her, and she took a step on the water's surface. Tiny ripples scurried across the water, but as she took another step, the water wasn't even an inch tall. Sasha was walking on water! She looked up at the group wolves, her mother motioned her to go on. With each ripple that traveled on the surface the shimmering white figures began to start a frenzy, like Christmas shopping at the mall.

Once Sasha stepped on the tiny island, all the figures in the water backed up against the walls and floor of the lake. All but one. Facing the opposite direction of the wolves, Sasha gazed down at a spirit in the water, and peeking out of the surface was a wolf head. The rest of its body was still shimmering and misty, and the details of the wolf like the eyes and exact color were unclear.

Sasha knelt down. Swift Silver replied, "Now touch the spirit's forehead."

Sasha lifted her left hand, and touched the animal's forehead. The next moment everything went black. Pain scorched every inch of her body, her heart felt like it was cooking over a blazing fire. She felt her bones bend in awkward positions causing more pain. Sasha's front became too heavy to stand on 2 feet and was forced downwards. Her clothes melted into her skin as fur began to grow. Sasha's ears became more pointed; a furry tail grew slowly longer and longer, and her nose and mouth merged into a snout. Black claws replaced her nails and her palms replaced by tough pads like a dogs. All of her bones grew longer and tougher, and hot yet icy coldness burned them. Sasha couldn't handle it any longer. She tried to scream but instead a howl in pain came out of her mouth. It felt like an eternity before the intense icy burning slowly faded and she had gained some of her sight back. Collapsing, Sasha looked up and saw a welcoming light, and a warm feeling coming from it. She saw images of herself and her parents smiling and happy. If she could just reach the light, Sasha could go back to all of the happy memories. Her body felt like it was floating towards it, but a voice in her head said, _No, fight the temptation. The light is what will kill you. You will never be able to turn back into human._

Sasha hardly heard the voice, but it caught her attention because it wasn't _her_ voice. The voice in her head sounded older, wiser, and gentler. She turned herself away from the light and ran from it, looking back at the warm yellow light that became smaller as the warmth also disappeared. Back in the cold darkness Sasha fell down and closed her eyes. All around her she could hear screams of fear and pain, and mocking laughter that came along with it. She could never really smell blood before, but the scent was so strong Sasha felt like she was drowning in it. She begged for it to be over, just to be home with her dad, for everything to be normal. But now nothing would ever be normal again. The voices were louder and louder and Sasha shut her eyes tighter and tighter.

All at once everything was silent for a moment, and before Sasha even dared open her eyes, a soft whisper said, "I now name you…" Sasha could hardly make out the rest of what the voice said, but it sounded like _Soaring Dove_. Was that the name of her wolf spirit?

Very slowly, she opened her eyes, and in front of her were two white paws. She was back in the Wolf Spring. Sasha tested her legs, oddly formed to what she was used to walking on. Once she was about to peer over the edge of the island to see her own reflection, she immediately stopped herself, afraid to see her wolf reflection. But she took one shaky step forward to see what she looked like.

Her eyes widened. The moon shone down on gorgeous, pure white fur, Sasha's elegant legs made her feel tall compared to being on all fours in human form. What shocked her most though were her own eyes. Instead of having two dark blue eyes, her right eye had an even darker blue, and the left eye was a slightly lighter blue than the right, along with silver that looked like a quarter moon in her eye.

Sasha looked around the Wolf Spring. Each detail was more defined, and every sound that was made, even the pack of wolves breathing, she heard it. The white wolf turned around to face the pack. The other wolves came forward, walking on top of the water, to see their newest recruit. The island was too small for all of them to stand on, and when Swift Silver stopped in front of her daughter, she gasped. Sasha backed away one step and asked, "What's wrong?" It felt odd that she could speak without moving her mouth.

Swift Silver whispered, "The white wolf Soaring Dove has chosen you. Never before has Soaring Dove chosen a human and if the legend is true about her then…"

The grey wolf stopped herself in mid-sentence. Soaring Dove never chose a human before now?

"If the legend is true then what?" The white wolf asked.

Swift Silver shook her head. "Never mind, it's only a legend. Tell me, did you go towards a yellow light during the transformation?"

Sasha replied, "I saw it, and nearly got to it but a voice in my head told me to stay away from it or it would kill me. So I did. Though it wasn't _my _voice."

Swift Silver praised, "Well done. The light is very tempting, but if you did reach it, you would lose your human soul. It would be scorched and leave you with only a wolf body. Seems as though Soaring Dove has helped you much already. And the name you now go by as a wolf is Soaring Dove. You are now a Guardian of the Dakota."

The other wolves began to congratulate Soaring Dove. Dark Shadow said, "It's hard to believe that such a powerful wolf has chosen you! I heard in legends from other wolf packs that Soaring Dove would choose only one human and that's it!"

Soaring Dove asked, "A powerful wolf? Why would she choose me anyway?"

Dark Shadow answered, "Soaring Dove was said to have an incredible power, but no one alive knows what that power is exactly, and there's a legend to it also, but Swift Silver made us all swear that if any of us found a human chosen by Soaring Dove, we would never tell them the legend. None of us knew why, but we have to keep our promise."

The last sentence made Soaring Dove frustrated, but she couldn't stay like that for long because she was happy that she had survived turning into a wolf. And now that she could turn into a wolf, it gave her ideas about how she could get back at Kyle… and Silvia.


	6. Chapter 6

Wolf Heart

Running from Illusions

Soaring Dove, in spite of not being able to know what the legend was about Dark Shadow mentioned, was happy, even being around others.

She was never that great with groups, after all the people laughing at her for the stupid mistakes she made, blamed several times for things she didn't do, and the rumors that easily spread throughout all of middle school. Who knew the rumors about one of the quietest people in the grade could be the most popular and last so long? Like the time Silvia started the rumor that Sasha was cheating on three guys. Kyle, another guy from 8th grade and a guy from 9th grade, both of whom she hardly heard of. And of course everyone believed Silvia, but not a single person believed Sasha.

Soaring Dove wished she could simply forget her stupid mistakes and move on, but the more time she spends alone, the easier it is for those memories to slip back into her mind, causing her to spend more of her life alone, trying to avoid making mistakes again. All she wanted was to be left alone, or simply erase history and start over her life. It made her wonder if she was nothing more than a bother to everyone or, at very rare times, a small necessity for games in gym class. The only time she felt comfortable being herself was being with her mom, the only one who made Soaring Dove feel like her life was worth something. Usually being around people gave her a slight irritated feeling, including her dad, but Swift Silver never gave Soaring Dove that feeling when her mom was human.

The white wolf noticed the other wolves were talking to one another, but couldn't hear them, too busy listening to her own thoughts. Soaring Dove looked down at her reflection in the water. She smiled, because for once she felt pride in the way she looked, so beautiful under the moon that shone down on her glistening, pure white fur. The wolf looked past her reflection for a moment at the spirits under the surface. The white shimmering figures that frenzied earlier were now peacefully drifting in the water.

She came closer to the water's surface, looking at the strange silver marking in her left eye. Strange, how it was a perfect quarter moon shape. She was taken by surprise a bit at a slight change in the silver marking. When the wolf came just an inch closer, her nose barely half a centimeter above the water, was that just a trick of the light, or is the silver in her left eye turning red? The quarter moon marking in her eye slowly distorted into a darker and darker red. Soaring Dove wanted to move away when the wolf realized that she couldn't move, couldn't hear, and couldn't see anything other than complete darkness that her surroundings melted into and the red quarter moon in her eye. Somehow she went from looking down at the moon to looking up. It wasn't until the moon was blood red when Soaring Dove could finally hear again, but the only sound the white wolf heard made her want to be deaf again. A blood chilling howl came from close behind caused every hair on her body to stiffen. The howl was like nothing she had ever heard before, long and mournful yet so full of hatred and cruelty, scorching into her mind. As soon as the howl started screams for mercy came from all around Soaring Dove. A few cursed bitterly at the one howling while most were pleading, but the words overlapped each other, making it almost impossible to pick out individuals in what sounded like an extremely large group. Out of the blur of agonized voices spoken one voice was able to be overheard from all the others. A pleading female voice cried out, "Please save us Soaring Dove!"

At the moment Soaring Dove couldn't think. Her mind went numb while tears flowed from her eyes and every one of her muscles felt suddenly weak with fatigue. The howling stopped, but the screams in pain continued while a voice behind her, the same one that howled, laughed coldly, enjoying the others suffering. It was a male voice, strong and deep, but it gave the she-wolf a feeling that whoever or whatever laughed, was much older than he sounded.

Soaring Dove heard footsteps come closer; a set of two feet came from behind her until she felt breathing against her right ear. It took all of Soaring Dove's wits to not attempt a scream for help, as she still felt frozen in place. Her eyes widened as the scent of blood reeked from his mouth as he whispered softly, "Such lovely, white fur you have. What a shame it would be to wreck such beauty." More tears threatened to fall in pure fear, yet somewhere in the back of her mind she didn't feel fear, but anger and a growl echoed in her mind for a few moments. All at once the presence that stood next to her disappeared; the cries for help slowly altered into murderous growls, and Soaring Dove was free to move again, which made her realize she was holding her breath, nearly collapsing from the sudden tiredness from before. As she gasped for air the wolf looked around, desperate for any sign of light or hope. She could feel cold darkness all around her, and something, many things, full of evil.

Looking up at the red moon, which gave off no light, she saw a few wisps of clouds begin to block the moon. The less visible the moon became the colder Soaring Dove felt. A wave of dread came over her. It wasn't until the moon was completely covered when somewhere lightning flashed, revealing the animals in front of her. She flinched when the thunder cracked that had immediately followed the lightning in the sky, and she could not believe the sight before her. Wolves, at least a hundred of them, standing on two feet, hunched shoulders, glowing red eyes, and some kind of shadowy aura lifted off their pelts. Werewolves? Demons? The wolf thought, _Both, but how is that possible?_

Lightning continued to flash and thunder shook the ground as one of the demonic creatures advanced towards her. She quickly backed away a few feet until the ground behind her no longer existed and her back legs fell and was left clawing at smooth stone. Looking for a grip with her back legs she found that nothing was there to help her get back on all fours. But seeing that she was surrounded by demons, the thought of getting back up wasn't very tempting to her. Soaring Dove continued to create claw marks in the stone to keep her from falling in the seemingly never ending darkness.

The demonic werewolf stopped at three feet in front of her while the others stood back farther away. As much as Soaring Dove wanted to keep her eyes away from the werewolf, her will went against her and looked up at the creature towering above her. The continuous flashes of lightning showed that the creature, rather than having paws were furry black hands with three inch claws that quickly grasped something around its neck and tore it off. The werewolf threw the object to the ground in front of the white wolf between her paws. Tiny volts of electricity ran down Soaring Dove's spine at what she saw in front of her. It was an amulet, its color she was unable to decipher, and as the wolf gradually looked up and straight into the demon's eyes, she knew she had just made a deadly mistake. The creature's eyes blazed with hatred, and raised its furry right arm, a grin spread across the werewolf's face showed off long, sharp fangs as it saw the terror in her eyes. Just before black claws met her face, Soaring Dove was sitting back in the cave, but it was distorted and darkened by red. The spirits weren't in the water, and the crystals were all black. Confused and scared, she backed away from her reflection and looked at the wolves behind her, only to find that they too had become demons. She guessed that even her mother Swift Silver was turned into a demonic werewolf because all seven standing behind her were replaced by the malevolent werewolves.

Panic seared through Soaring Dove as they came nearer, so with no hesitation she turned and leaped off the tiny island in the center of the lake, then trusted her new legs as the she-wolf sprinted at full speed towards the exit, running from the demons behind her. Their barks and snarling filled her ears, and no matter how much she tried to block the sounds out they would echo in her mind. Soaring Dove only ran faster when the werewolves pursued after her, like hungry predators closing in on weak prey.

Somewhere the white wolf heard Dark Shadow call her name as she entered the tunnel, barely heard over the werewolves barking, making her hesitate for a split second, then she thought, _What am I doing!? I'll be dead if I stop!_ Faster than ever she made her way through the tunnel, twisting and turning until she was back at the entrance. No crickets or frogs could be heard, only the wind and creaking trees. Soaring Dove looked at her surroundings, and everything was tinged with red. She looked up at the sky. Before the she-wolf entered the tunnel there was a beautiful full moon, which has now been replaced by the blood red quarter moon in a starless sky. Soaring Dove barely had time to think before she heard the echoed barks from behind her.

Quickly, she ran to her left out of the clearing and into the dense forest. Though Soaring Dove had the same vision as a wolf, sharper than a human's, her eyes were blurred by the tears that streaked down her face as she barely avoided low hanging branches and large roots, threatening to slow the wolf down. Eventually Soaring Dove came up to a river that was two feet deep and ten feet wide. In an effort to cover her scent from the pack of demonic beasts, she leaped into the water, and then trotted downstream instead of running to keep from making too much noise. She felt a pad on her front left paw tear on a sharp stone. The water was too dark to see anything, but Soaring Dove felt the blood flow freely. The wolf clenched her teeth tightly, anger and alarm rising in her. Once there was enough distance to scarcely see where Soaring Dove had first jumped into the river, she got out of the water on the other side and hid behind the bushes next to as the demons came to view, just about suffocating herself to keep her breathing steady and quiet. Hopefully she could hide here until the demonic beings went away.

Each one sniffed the air or had their nose to the ground drooling. One werewolf walked downstream on two back feet, carefully scanning the trees with red eyes. As the beast came closer Soaring Dove backed away slowly, hoping the ground wouldn't disappear under her feet like before. She took one more step back and, with her luck, stepped on a brittle stick that snapped loud enough for the closest demon to hear. The she-wolf felt momentarily stunned at the snap and the creature looked right at her direction. Soaring Dove could only wait until the creature made a move. She avoided looking at the demonic creature in the eyes and focused on the aura lifting off its pelt. The shadowy aura around it seemed to intensify as the demon slightly lowered its head, still looking straight at her. Every muscle screamed at her to run as the air grew colder.

Finally, she couldn't take it. The white wolf twisting around and sprinted full speed away from the demon that pursued after her, doing her best to ignore the stinging cut on her paw that left a tiny trail of blood. The demon snarled and she could hear it come closer and closer behind her. It didn't matter whether she made a sharp turn or boosted her speed as much as she could, the demon was getting nearer.

The ground before Soaring Dove sloped down. The hill was filled with obstacles such as trees and large thorn bushes. Knowing it was a bad idea, she continued her speed, certain that the ground was slippery with mud from the recent rain. It may give Soaring Dove a chance to gain more distance between her and the demon. After that, she wasn't sure what to do next. Soon the slick mud had her lose footing and tripped over a large root, landing heavily on her right shoulder, and banging her head against a large stone sticking out of the ground at least twice the size she was. The wolf was deafened by a ringing sound in her head. Closing her eyes, the white wolf shook her head, dazed from the pain on her head and shoulder. If she could get just one wish, it would be for all of the chaotic stuff that's been happening to be over. Or that this night never had existed, to be back in her room with her dog Shadow. She even missed praying that her nightmare wouldn't return, though it had each night unless she stayed awake.

When Soaring Dove blinked open her eyes the next moment, she felt a great rush of relief wash over her. Everything was no longer tinged with red, the sound of crickets and frogs returned, and the pale white, full moon was back in the star filled sky.

_It was an illusion, that's what I was running from. Nothing more, _she thought. But the hallucinations still made her edgy and was amazed at how real they seemed, scaring her half to death.

Getting back up on her feet, she winced at the pain in her shoulder and saw that her right side was caked in sticky mud. She looked up the slope and saw a dark figure coming at her. Then she heard Dark Shadow's voice again. This time it wasn't overlapped by snarls and barks, but exact words were hard to make out, as Soaring Dove's head was still filled with the annoying ringing sound. She backed away as Dark Shadow slid sideways down the hill on his paws and stopped next to the white wolf.

"Alright, now that you've stopped running from me, can you please tell me what the heck that was all about?" asked Dark Shadow, catching his breath.

Soaring Dove looked away. She felt ashamed, miserable, and angry at herself. She wanted to be left alone. Her only reply was, "I guess I was seeing things. That's all. I really don't want to talk about right now Dark Shadow."

Dark Shadow said, "Why not? C'mon, you can tell me. It looked like you were running from something and-"

Now she was getting ticked. It was the first time she's ever been scared like that, other than being in the car crash over two years ago near her dead mother. Soaring Dove had very little patience for those who wouldn't leave her alone. She had little patience to people who only talked to her.

Face to face with the black wolf Soaring Dove looked straight in his amber colored eyes and cut him off. "That's exactly it Dark Shadow! You were that something! I don't know why I had this stupid hallucination, but I do know that you and the other wolves wanted to kill me, even my mother! There, are you happy now?"

Then Soaring Dove quickly realized her mistake. Dark Shadow was only worried and asked while she snapped at him. Soaring Dove backed away and took a deep breath, avoiding eye contact. She had to force out the words from her mind, "I'm really sorry… I just… want to go home."

A tear escaped from her left eye and landed on a wild raspberry vine.


End file.
